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The Scottish Government has engaged extensively with industry regarding the proposed reform of the Energy Performance Certificate rating system. Engagement work over the past year has included, but is not limited to, the below events with the highlighted organisations.

Engagement has occurred in previous years. This includes through our earlier consultation in 2021, which incorporated workshop events which were open to stakeholders to attend as well as traditional responses.

We are intending to publish a second consultation containing our final proposals this summer, and will continue to engage with all stakeholders during this process.

The Scottish Government is committed to reforming Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) to ensure they drive the energy efficiency improvements we need and to incentivise zero direct emissions heating. In 2021, we consulted on the introduction of a new domestic EPC metric based on a dwelling’s energy use. Following feedback received through consultation, we have undertaken further work to develop options for EPC metrics, and wider reforms. We intend to publish a consultation on our final proposals for EPC reform this summer.

An Estate Strategy and Carbon Management Plan for Scottish Government core buildings is under development to support our asset planning and the future investment decisions required to improve the energy performance of our buildings and deliver the Heat in Building Strategy and Net Zero targets.

The Scottish Government is committed to delivering energy saving projects across its estate, such as reduced use of natural gas, improved insulation, more efficient boilers, and the installation of solar panels. In the last 18 months, two projects to remove gas heating, install insulation, install triple glazing and solar PV were completed at our Thainstone and Tweedbank buildings. Additionally, LED lighting was installed at Victoria Quay and SASA in Edinburgh. The EPC's for these buildings will be updated in due course.

Feasibility studies are currently being carried out for other owned buildings on our estate.

Following an open procurement exercise, in June 2022 the Building Research Establishment (BRE) was commissioned by the Scottish Government to develop potential options for new EPC metrics; model the Scottish housing stock against these new metrics, propose a system to map the new metrics to a 1-100 and A-G scale, and identify the improvement measures needed to retrofit dwellings to achieve high EPC ratings in the new metrics.

This work was concluded in March 2023 and we intend to publish BRE’s report alongside our forthcoming EPC reform consultation. The fee was £93,768.

In the 2021 Heat in Buildings Strategy, the Scottish Government committed to reforming Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) to ensure they drive the energy efficiency improvements we need and to incentivise zero direct emissions heating. The need for this work was recently reemphasised by the Climate Change Committee. The team working on the development of the proposed new energy efficiency ratings system comprises of staff at the following Scottish Government Pay Grades:

1 x C2

1 x C1

2 x B3

1 x B2

This team is overseen by a member of staff at Senior Civil Service grade SCS1. Staff are not working solely on EPC metric development and have other responsibilities.

Of the 26 new buses that have space for transporting bikes there are 13 planned to operate on routes in Aberdeenshire.

The Additional Support for Learning Act places duties on education authorities to identify, provide for and review the additional support needs of their pupils. It is for individual authorities to determine the training required for all staff to ensure pupils reach their full potential.

All initial teacher education programmes must align with the General Teaching Council for Scotland’s Standard for Provisional Registration. The Standard sets out that student teachers are required to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of additional support needs and to take account of learners with such needs.

The Scottish Government is working closely with local government partners to improve the experience of children and young people with additional support needs at school, implementing the recommendations of the 2020 additional support for learning review, including those relating to the professional learning of school staff. In November 2022, we published an updated action plan and a second progress report . A further update is due to be published in May 2024.

The recruitment of specialists in menopause is a matter for individual health boards as the employer, depending on their service need.

Through the Women’s Health Plan, we want all women to have timely access to menopause support and services and there is now a specialist menopause services in every mainland health board and a ‘buddy’ support system in place for the Island health boards.

Scottish Government do not hold this information centrally. Individual Health Boards would need to be contacted to provide a breakdown of menopause specialists employed by each Health Board. There is a specialist menopause service in every mainland NHS Board, with a buddy system in place for the Island Boards.

In Scotland, children and young people's needs are met by planning for their learning and support through an individualised educational programme or Additional Support Plan. These set out targets for learning and the support to be provided. For children and young people who have complex or multiple needs, which require significant support from education and another agency or agencies, a statutory co-ordinated support plan (CSP) may be required. The purpose of the CSP is to support co-ordinated multi-agency planning to meet pupils' needs.